It Was Only A Study Group
by Daydreamer 1994am
Summary: Two unlikely people find a connection to each other they never thought possible. All in a place where love was always in the air, but where they had least expected it. A one-shot scenario of Toradora!, celebrating Valentine's Day. Slight suggestive themes.


_Suggestive themes have been written for a young but mature audience._

* * *

It Was Only a Study Group

Two young students were sitting on opposite ends of a restaurant dining table. One of them, an orange haired girl wearing a stylish purple jacket, was looking off to her side, loathing the idea that she had to be where she was. The other, an intimidating looking teenager wearing a not-so stylish coat, sat expressionless but slightly awkward, unsure of how to make the best of his situation. These two people who would consider themselves almost strangers to each another were now sharing a table together alone. And the tension between the both of them was nothing less than nerve wracking. Unwilling to stay in his position any longer, the young man spoke up first to break the silence.

"Hey umm, Kihara, do you want to start studying for finals right now? We can get a head start before the others come back." He spoke timidly while looking down at the table below him. There was a slight silence before he got a reply.

"No, I want to wait until everyone gets here." She said in an irked manner, still looking off into the distance.

"...yeah, I guess that does make more sense..." He said realizing that his efforts were going nowhere. He brought his eyes up to look again at who he was sitting with. Maya Kihara, an average girl who spent most of her time with a small group of girls at school, was doing her best at avoiding as much eye contact with him as possible. She had her arms crossed defensively, and wore an irritated expression alongside with it. It was clear to him that she didn't come to this family diner to just be alone with a guy she didn't know. He let out a heavy sigh and brought his head back down in acceptance.

The young girl took notice that he was no longer paying attention to her and very slowly swayed her eyes towards him, getting a careful look herself. She was sitting with a boy named Ryuuji Takasu, who would always be seen being around the school famous palmtop tiger herself, Taiga Aisaka.

"No doubt this guy is only here because of her," she thought to herself. The two of them were already at a table by themselves when everyone else had arrived. She had a clear vision of what his intention was."Sorry that your precious tiger got taken away from you." She looked down and studied his clothing in curiosity. "Still... you gotta think about dressing better if you're going to impress her. No girl's going to want to be seen with a-" She cut off her train of thinking, realizing she was putting far too much thought into how he looked. "Whatever." She brought her eyes back to where they were and continued staring off into the dining area.

Under ordinary circumstances these two students would never hold a conversation together. But this wasn't just an average school day to the both of them. This was a study group, a study group that could give anyone the chance to do what they normally couldn't do under the pressure of their peers. Unfortunately neither of the two had intended for things to turn out this way.

"It's taking a long time for everyone to come back..." Takasu meekly gave another try to and break the ice.

"..." Kihara continued to remain silent, ignoring him. Takasu began to become frustrated at his failed attempts. Not knowing what else to do he decided to be upfront up with her. He was never known to be a subtle talker anyway.

"Kihara." He spoke confidently towards her, giving her his full attention and awareness.

The young girl slowly swayed her eyes back towards Takasu, looking dead-on into his gaze. Her cheeks reddened only slightly; she put sincere effort into not showing that she was embarrassed, and even more effort into keeping her bored expression.

"Yeah?" She said quietly, just loud enough to where her words would reach him.

"So I know we don't talk much at school, and you may not like me or something like that, but I don't want there to be any bad feelings between us. At least not tonight."

Kihara moved her eyes back away from his, shocked by how straight forward he was with her. Her cheeks reddened again, barely being noticeable. "...well it's not like I hate you or anything..." She kept her frown as she said her words.

Takasu smiled. "Great. I don't hate you either. Let's start to know each other and have a good time studying for finals." Kihara nodded in approval, still refusing to look towards his way.

The young man noticed the tension between them start to slip away, and saw an opportunity to get rid of it once and for all. He took the chance with no hesitation. "We've never really introduced ourselves to each other have we?" He re-positioned himself, sitting straight up. "I'm Takasu, Takasu Ryuuji. Let's work hard tonight." He brought his arm towards her for a handshake.

Kihara looked at Takasu once again, hesitant in being vulnerable and accepting his offer. She brought her eyes down to look at his hand, and then steadily back up, looking to see if this was some sort of trick. She found herself once again gazing at his face. He wore a gentle and caring smile, which stood out against his rather rough looking demeanor. And his eyes, though they still somewhat scared her, now seemed welcoming, inviting almost. She looked at Takasu as a whole, confident and waiting. Her heart skipped a few beats.

Her frown gave way to a sweet and sincere smile. Takasu's confidence wavered for just a moment as she saw Kihara's smile for the first time.. "Woah..." he thought, fully admitting to himself to how cute she looked. He regained his composure in a split-second though as Kihara turned and faced him. She brought out her hand passively, allowing him to be the gentleman and carry the handshake. "My name is Kihara. Maya Kihara. Let's try our best."

Takasu grasped her soft hand and shook it as politely as he could. The two of them now lost sight in each others eyes for a few moments, enjoying the new bond they had formed with each other. They both wished, although they never knew it about each other, that there relationship would go forward from this point onward. A few seconds later they parted the handshake and now were no longer scared of each others' company. The atmosphere was now welcoming as opposed to revolting. And as such a conversation was in the midst of sparking. Kihara spoke up first, excited by the new found ambiance between them.

"Hey Takasu, so I was wonder-" She was interrupted suddenly as a group of people walked up to the both of them.

"Hey you two. Sorry we took a while. Taiga and I wanted to wait for Noto and Haruta to come out of the restroom. We got everyone's drinks though so I think it was worth the wait." Kitamura, a fellow classmate of theirs, greeted them carrying a tray of assorted drinks. Behind him were the rest of the students who were in their study group. Noto, a skinny boy who sported glasses, Haruta, a long blue haired boy, and Taiga, a short golden haired girl gathered around Kitamura, each grabbing what they had gotten off the tray.

"Hey Maruo! Thanks for ordering drinks for everyone!" Kihara turned her attention to Kitamura and stood up, walking towards him. She put her arms around his shoulder in a flirtatious manner giving an enticing smile along with it. "Oh wow, this is my favorite brand of iced coffee! You're the best!" She said in a perky voice as she grabbed her drink.

Takasu looked at Kihara in confusion, unsure about her sudden change in personality. "Why is she acting like that? Just what is she trying to do?" He thought to himself, lost in his mind for a few brief moments.

"It's no big deal. Now that everyone's here we can get down to business. Let's get everyone seated." Kitamura moved the topic along in his gentle voice while shrugging off Kihara in the process. She stepped back uncomfortably, unprepared for how his subtle rejection. She reluctantly started to go back to her seat but quickly stopped, as if she realized there was something she forgot to do. She turned around toward Kitamura's tray of drinks once more.

"You just wanted an ice water right Takasu?" She looked behind her and reassurance from him. Takasu who was still absent minded met her eyes once again. He became sheepish immediately, self conscious from eyeing her for a while. His sight darted instinctively back to her gorgeous smile, captivated by it. "Hmm? Takasu?"

"Y-yeah, I'm surprised you remember what I ordered..." He stumbled over his words, attempting to recover from his sudden embarrassment. He aimed his eyes down quickly unable to keep a straight face in front of her. A few moments later he noticed a tall glass of water being put on the table front of him.

"Don't worry. I pay more attention than what it seems like." Kihara gave a kind response as she walked next to him and brought him his drink. "Aren't I great?" She jokingly said.

Takasu used her kindness to step back out of his shell. "Thanks Kihara." He looked back in her eyes, giving a warmhearted grin. Kihara was stunned for a brief moment.

"Wow... anyone ever tell you you look really cute when you're embarrassed like that?" She thought to herself. "One minute you got me wanting to follow your lead and the next I just want to-" She stopped her train of thinking immediately, knowing full well that she shouldn't be thinking about it. "...But still... it couldn't hurt could it?" She shifted back to reality and with that back to Takasu.

"You're welcome!" She gave a bright a smile, but something about it wasn't quite right to Takasu. He didn't understand what it was, but the smile just wasn't the same as the one he had seen just moments before. He became perplexed. "Just what is she-...?" His thoughts were filled now with nothing but her.

"Okay, let's make the seats quick and simple!" Noto spoke up, filled with enthusiasm. "Haruta, you can sit right there on the opposite seat to Takasu."

"Excuuuuuuse me." Haruta quickly slid himself toward the far end of the table. How fast this all seemed to happen gave neither Kihara nor Takasu the time to really understand what was going on.

"Kihara, you can sit next to Takasu." Noto gently, but rather forcefully started to push her towards the seat adjacent to Takasu.

"Wha- hey, just what is-" She attempted to speak up against what was going on but was taken away by how swift this was occurring. She sat down only about half a foot away from Takasu. As she did she locked glances with his eyes once more but quickly turned away from him, hiding her faint red cheeks from him as well.

"I'll sit next to Haruta..." Noto sat proudly at the edge of his seat, as if basking in his own intellect. "And since there isn't any more room Kitamura and Taiga can sit on the table next to us. That should be close enough to where we can all study together." Kitamura and Taiga both quietly agreed to his idea and sat down. Kihara not so quietly started to speak up against it.

"Hey wait a minute that is so totally not fair! I want to sit over there too!"

Noto gave a smug smile towards her as a reply. "Hey what's the matter, why don't you want to sit next to Takasu? You two seemed to get along just fine a second ago." He asked convincingly.

"N-no I don't mind sitting next to him at all!" Takasu and Kihara looked at each other, as if trying to justify Noto's claim. They found each others' close stares too embarrassing and turned back. Kihara became silent and flustered.

"See? Everything's fine. Now, let's start-"

"Hey guys, I think I've got a problem over here." Kitamura stood up, checking his pockets furiously. "I can't find my wallet. I think I might have left it at the counter when I ordered. I'll be back, I'm going to see if the cashier knows where it is."

"Sure." Noto replied instantly. "And while you're at it you should take Taiga along with you. She might help you remember. After all the both of you were really close to each other most of the time over there." Noto's suggestion flustered Kihara even more.

"Huh!?" She timidly spoke up, and was ignored in doing so.

"Good idea," Kitamura answered back. "Want to help me Aisaka?"

Taiga, who had remained silent and bashful this entire time, shook her head yes and proceeded to follow Kitamura back towards the front counter. Kihara watched in dismay as the both of them went off together. Her thoughts vividly reflected what she felt. "Just what the heck is happening is right now!?"

She was left speechless, literally watching everything she prepared for go and walk out on her. Knowing it wasn't a possibility to speak up further and show her intentions she looked down in pity and defeat. "Well this is just great..." she spoke in her mind. "Just what am I going to do now...?" She swayed her eyes below in an attempt to think. Unconsciously she turned her head towards Takasu right beside her. "...Wait. Aren't you and Taiga like, I don't know, like together? Shouldn't you be doing something about this?" She tilted her head up cautiously to get a better look at him. Takasu was looking off towards Kitamura's direction, in a rather expressionless stare. "...Why are you so calm? You're not mad your tiger is getting taken away from you?" Takasu looked back towards the table, appearing to not be bothered with Taiga's leave. "Just what is he-...? Whatever."

"Okay, do you two want to tell me just what it is your planning?" Takasu questioned Noto and Haruta directly ahead of him. "It's obvious you guys wanted them to be alone from the start." Kihara quietly observed him.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Noto obnoxiously said. Takasu's disposition worsened having been given a childish answer.

"Don't give me that! Are you going to tell me the truth or not!?" Takasu now rose his voice against him being clearly upset about what was going on. Everyone around him became startled, Kihara however still kept her eyes on him, slowly sipping away at her coffee.

"Hey settle down, man don't be like that and ruin all the fun." Noto cautiously said, obviously intimidated by Takasu. "Anyway, me and Haruta have a plan that's gonna blow your mind."

"Yeah? And just what the heck is that?" Takasu asked still aggravated.

"Well, don't you think that Kitamura and the Tiger would make a good couple?" Haruta spoke up between the two. "Just think about it, if they ended being together then our class's reputation would go off the charts! We'd be on top of the school!" His enthusiasm was plentiful, but rather selfish to everybody else.

"What Haruta means is that we think the both of them would be happy dating each other. We just thought we'd help them out a little that's all." Noto leaned into the table with a sinister smile on his face. "And you know what? We even got proof that Kitamura has a crush on Taiga!"

'"...What?" Takasu's mood showed no sign of getting better.

"It's true!" Haruta said. "I've been seeing Kitamura and Taiga talking a lot to each other and he's like a totally different person around her! So I told my buddy right here about it and he was all for giving the both of them as much time as they needed tonight. And soooo..." He reached into his pocket and brought something out with a goofy smile. "Tada! We snagged his wallet! This way the guy's gonna spend the whole night with her!"

"Are you guys serious?"

"It get's better though! So me and Noto were looking through it in the restroom to see what kind of cool stuff was in it and check it out!" He pulled out a small picture from deep within the wallet. "It's a picture of Taiga! Why would he carry a picture of her if he wasn't so madly in love with her! It all makes sense! The both of them are made for each other!"

Takasu's frustration was near exploding. "You guys are-"

"You guys suck." Kihara interrupted, having her own anger which she wasn't shy to voice. Takasu looked over towards her and saw a face, a face of passion to let known how she really felt.

"What's the matter? Are you mad or something?" Noto gave a smile just as vain as he said his words.

"Of course I'm mad!" Her anger rose ferociously. "What do you two think you're doing!? What gives you the right to go and get involved in something like this!?"

"Come on, we're not doing this for us. We're doing this to help them out."

"The heck you are!" Kihara stood up, slamming her hands on to the diner table. "You're not helping anybody out! You're just doing this because you're a stupid dork!"

Noto became aggravated, hurt by her words. "... What did you call me?" He looked in her fearsome eyes, trying to challenge her authority.

"I said you're a dork! A stupid 4-eyed dork that tries to mess with people's lives because he's a loner!"

Noto's anger started to match Kihara's as he started to rise and yell back, but he slumped back in his seat with a devilish smile. "Ohhh, I get it. You're just jealous because you have a-" Kihara's eyes widened instantly.

*SMAAAACK*

She slapped Noto's face with all of her strength, knocking off his glasses in the process. Noto brought his hands to his face, embarrassed and flustered with hurt emotions. With full red cheeks and slightly watery eyes he tried to look back at her but she was no where to be found. He looked to his right to see her stomping out with her belongings, wanting nothing more to do with him.

"What a dumb little..." He muttered to himself, unable to control his emotions.

Takasu's mind was forfeit. His attention was focused on Kihara for the entire time and now he sat starstruck, staring at her flowing orange hair as she marched towards the exit. Having been lost in her tenacity he snapped back into reality, realizing how the situation had changed. He stood up firmly.

"I'll be back." He said as he started to walk after her.

"Take your time! No one really cares if she comes back!" Noto yelled. Takasu clenched his fist as he went off, not willing to take his company anymore.

Takasu walked outside Jonny's and was met with a chilling wind. Startled by the change in setting he brought his scarf around his neck to settle with the cold. He paused still standing in the snowy night, deciding what to do next. He looked around him to find a barren empty street with only the falling snow to accompany him. His simple thoughts were blank. He did not where to go. He did not where to start walking. But all he knew was that he had to walk, because that was the only way he was going to find her. It was that thought alone that fueled him. He needed to find Kihara. He had to.

After searching several streets around the diner he took the time to dwell further into himself, justifying his actions in doing so. His primal thought was to be with her but any reason as to why was lost to him. Surely the group could have studied without her. She wasn't invited to begin with. He only just really talked to her today. But no matter what kind of sense he drew in his mind he denied it. All that he could hear were her words. All that he could see was her smile. And to him, that was all that really mattered in this brief moment.

"Takasu~!" A mischievous Kihara stood in his imagination. "Hey, Takasu!" Wearing her cute purple jacket she now stood in front of him, slightly leaning into his body. She playfully held her hands behind her, bringing her face forward slowly closer to his. "Takasu." Her eyes mesmerized him as they drew nearer and nearer. He felt as if they would make him melt. "Hey... Takasu." Her soft and heavy voice lingered in his ears. Kihara brought a hand to his cheek, gently persuading his head to ever so slowly come closer to hers. With it she tenderly explored the contours of his cheekbones; up and down her hand casually made his skin her home. Inches separated the warmth of their lips. "...Well...? What's the matter...?" For the longest seconds of his life she stood idly there, her eyes slowly flickering down shut. And in a moment she dashed away from him, teasingly spinning and frolicking in front of him. "*giggle*, aren't I great?" A few meters in distance she posed, leaning forward with her hands on her knees. Takasu's sight focused on her gorgeous smile. "So... Takasu? What are you going to do?" She closed her eyes whimsically and in an instant his imagination went up with the wind. Everything seemed to meld into a gust of snow that engulfed his vision white. The haze then cleared. Takasu found himself in a small neighboring alley to Jonny's. Alongside a wall a few meters away a pretty girl in a purple jacket stood, having her head down below her. She brought it up to look in Takasu's direction as if it was fate. Their eyes connected instantly. "T...Takasu?" It was Kihara.

Kihara stayed speechless as she saw Takasu slowly walk towards her. A combination of feelings mixed inside her to create something she didn't quite understand. She was scared but wanting. Shy but brave. The only thing that remained constant was her racing heart. She continued to lose herself in his eyes as he silently came closer and closer. Her unknown feeling quickly became all she was.

"...Hey Kihara." Takasu now stood in front of her, gently saying his words.

"...Hey Takasu..." Kihara responded just as gently. A quick but slow silence surrounded each of their sentences. "...What are you doing here?"

"I came to get you. We need to study together." Their eyes pierced each others' gazes. Never did they veer off.

"...N-no, I was thinking that I should go home-..." Her cheeks reddened without her will. Neither did her emotions enter her conscious mind. "...I don't think that I can be here anymore-"

"You came here to see Kitamura right?" There was no hesitation in Takasu's voice, but no sign of cowardice either.

"...Umm yeah... but I guess he has Taiga so-"

"So you didn't come here to do anything else...?"

The distance between them started to close. They weren't aware of who started to move towards who.

A heartwarming silence followed for a brief moment.

"...What about you...? Aren't you here to be with Taiga?..." Kihara's words were soft. It didn't take much for her voice to reach Takasu.

"...No. ...No I'm not." Takasu's words seemed as if they slowly evaporated into the atmosphere. Kihara's thoughts evaporated along with them.

"So... does that mean you two... you're not together or anything...?" Their faces drew closer. Inches separated the warmth of their lips.

"...No we're not... she's not the one on my mind right now..." Takasu tenderly placed his hands on her shoulders. They slowly moved to the crevices of her back, resting on her waist and her shoulder blades. He naturally drew her in.

"...So... can you tell me who is..." Kihara's eyes dimmed shut willingly. Her body was warm to the touch. It became warmer when she felt the heat of Takasu's breath.

Takasu angled his head down and brought his lips to hers. Kihara freely gave in, matching the movements of her lips to the rhythm of his. All power she had seemed to fade with his embrace. Her arms fell limb not being needed. All she felt was the fire of Takasu's lips exploring hers. All she focused on was exploring his. Nothing else seemed to matter, and nothing else seemed more natural.

Through his fingers Takasu could feel Kihara's body snuggle closer and closer, asking for more attention. On instinct his hands maneuvered around the rest of her back, leaving no stone upturned. He felt her tongue shyly start to move around and on reaction his body drew her in even tighter. Kihara passionately began to investigate her new found indulgence. She brought her arms around Takasu and drew him in as close as possible. Takasu was driven wild.

Seconds seemed like minutes and those minutes seemed like fleeting hours. They parted from each others' caress, following the tempo of the moment. Within breathing range they both opened their eyes and were adrift in each others stares. In mere moments Kihara brought her hands to the sides of Takasu's face. She explored the contours of his cheekbones, casually making his skin her home. She drew him in, angling herself to match his stature. Takasu let her do as she pleased. For what seemed like forever the both of them let themselves become lost in each other. A young beautiful girl and a confident young man were caught in each others passion, all in the moment of the falling evening snow.

"Uugh, when is Takasu coming back?" Back at Jonny's Haruta questioned the situation. Takasu had left the diner for a solid length now. "We can't start without him."

"Don't know, he's probably chasing down Kihara. And knowing that idiot of a girl Takasu is going to be gone for a while." Noto said repulsively. "You know what, we can just start withou-" He went down to reach for Takasu's bag but suddenly stopped.

"What do you think you're reaching for?" Takasu stood separating Noto from his belongings.

"H-hey Takasu! It's nothing we just thought of studying earlier since Kitamura and Taiga hadn't come back yet! And since you were a no show for a while we were just gonna grab the sarge's notes! No hard feelings right?" Noto replied apologetically, afraid.

Takasu put his bag on the table in an aggressive manner. He opened it up and took out the notes that belonged to the student council president. He slammed it right beside the two of them and started to walk off.

"Wha-? Hey just what-"

"Use those notes and give them back to me during school. Something came up and I have to get back home." Takasu cut Noto off and gave an answer that didn't care much for his opinion. Noto didn't say anything back. Takasu left Jonny's quickly.

"Sweet. I guess we got the hookup then huh?" Noto said towards Haruta.

"I wonder why he left." Haruta asked confused.

"Who cares, we got what we needed to get. C'mon lets do this."

"Sure I guess..." Haruta went along with his suggestion, unwilling to speak his own mind. "Hey, where do you think Kitamura and Taiga are? You think those two are good?"

"It doesn't really matter. Even if they got a little close nothing big is going to happen. Were just here to study after all." Noto said confidently.

"I guess you're right... this is just a study group..." Haruta depressingly opened up one of the several notebooks saddened to not expect a display of public affection. Both him and Noto began to lazily write and practice, waiting for Kitamura and Taiga to give up on finding their wallet and rejoin them.

Outside the diner Takasu walked for a few minutes down the adjacent road and turned the corner to a nearing neighborhood. Waiting for him was Kihara, who was excited to see him come along.

"There you are~!" She ran up to him impishly, clinging on to his arm. "Where were you? You took forever!"

"You know it's been 10 minutes right Kihara?" Takasu spoke kindly, giving a relaxed smile with it.

"Well whatever! It still felt like a long time!" She said happily with her eyes closed, laying her head along his shoulders. Takasu looked down, unwilling to believe such a beautiful girl was right next to him. "So we're still going to study together right? Right~?"

"Well yeah, I want to and we still have time tonight. But where exactly are we going?"

"Isn't it obvious? We're gonna go to my place!" Kihara brought her face up to Takasu's, giving her gorgeous smile that he knew too well. "I've got all my notes there so it's perfect!"

"What about your parents? Won't they say something about it?"

"Nope, they work tonight so we'll have the house to ourselves!" She snuggled his arm affectionately as she merrily said her words. "It's not like we're going to do anything bad right? It's only a study group~!"

Takasu snickered to himself, knowing full well of her true intentions. He wasn't going to object to her offer either."Lead the way I guess."

"Sure thing!" Kihara slowly started walking down the neighborhood road, leading and cherishing Takasu's arm all the while.

A few minutes later Takasu noticed Kihara become unusually quiet. Upon further inspection he noticed her face a full cute red, with eyes gently slowly swaying up and down. "Hey what's the matter? You're not going to fall asleep on me are you?"

Her voice became timid and embarrassed, but she willingly opened her feelings towards him. "No... no that's it. I'm just sort of thinking is all." The image of her head resting on his arm along with her sweet voice led Takasu to treasure this moment. "I mean... I planned so hard to work tonight to get something like this... I even got advice from Ami and everything... and at first I didn't think it was going to work. And then you came along and well... well I didn't have to try at all!" She rubbed her face along his chest. "I'm really happy right now."

In a moment Takasu thought back to the first time she saw her smile, then the smile she gave to him with Kitamura. It didn't take much for him to realize what was going on. He increased his walking speed and went around towards Kihara's front side. He held up her bangs with one hand and with the other gently tilt her head towards his.

"? Takas-" With one swift but caring motion he gave a passionate kiss towards the girl of his dreams. Kihara enjoyed every second of it, however brief it was. Takasu let her go gently.

"You don't need to try Kihara. You're already perfect the way you are. You're amazing." He said his words affectionately without a doubt in his mind.

Kihara blushed profusely. Her embarrassment soon turned to confidence though as she beamed the smile that Takasu loved. "*giggle*, I know right? Aren't I great~?"


End file.
